In this brief product review I’ll give you a quick look at the new Kensington 4 port USB charger for mobile devices. Despite a long and complicated sounding name, the product is about as simple as it gets.

The charger is nothing more than a power brick, with 4 USB ports. While this may sound boring, it is actually one of the most convenient chargers I’ve seen in ages. Almost all my pocket gadgets charge over USB nowadays. Everything from my mobile phone to my iPod can be charged using a simple USB cable and charger. With that in mind, I can now carry a single small charger, and power 4 gadgets at the same time.

The concept is similar to the Chargepod, which I reviewed here last year. Of course, you’ll still need to carry the USB cables required for your device, but with just a single power brick, you’ll reduce the amount of stuff you need to carry with you. If you carry a laptop, you can use its USB ports to charge your devices, but that means you’ll have to keep the computer on.

The Kensington 4 port USB charger for mobile devices operates on voltages from 100-240 Volts, so you can safely bring it abroad, as long as you carry a suitable plug adapter for the outlet at your destination. The unit provides up to 2 amps of power, which is enough to provide full power to all 4 gadgets at the same time.

You’ll find the Kensington 4 port USB charger for mobile devices at Kensington.com ($29.99) and Amazon ($21.99). Several of the Amazon reviews mention that it did not charge their devices, but I have connected it to every USB device I could find, and it always charged them correctly.

My only minor complaint with the device is the lack of folding prongs. Other than that it is simple, reliable and affordable. If you travel with more than one USB powered device, it’s certainly a product I can recommend.